Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 18, 2026
Translational Brain Mapping at the University of Rochester Medical Center: Preserving the Mind Through Personalized Brain Mapping
Published on: August 12, 2019
Preoperative sensorimotor mapping in brain tumor patients using spontaneous fluctuations in neuronal activity imaged
Dongyang Zhang1, James M Johnston, Michael D Fox
1Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA. zhangd@npg.wustl.edu
Objective:
To describe initial experience with resting-state correlation mapping as a potential aid for presurgical planning of brain tumor resection.
Methods:
Resting-state blood oxygenation-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were acquired in 17 healthy young adults and 4 patients with brain tumors invading sensorimotor cortex. Conventional fMRI motor mapping (finger-tapping protocol) was also performed in the patients. Intraoperatively, motor hand area was mapped using cortical stimulation.
Results:
Robust and consistent delineation of sensorimotor cortex was obtained using the resting-state blood oxygenation-dependent data. Resting-state functional mapping localized sensorimotor areas consistent with cortical stimulation mapping and in all patients performed as well as or better than task-based fMRI.
Conclusion:
Resting-state correlation mapping is a promising tool for reliable functional localization of eloquent cortex. This method compares well with "gold standard" cortical stimulation mapping and offers several advantages compared with conventional motor mapping fMRI.
